Special Report on the Los Angeles Fires – Watch Now

Another alarm bell from mother nature has just gone off. And the question is, is it too late, or can we still change the outcome? Thank you for joining us for this Unchained TV special report. I’m Jane Velez Mitchell. One of the most catastrophic wildfires in American history has torn through Southern California. I’m here in Los Angeles along the iconic Pacific Coast Highway, which has long been famous for its breathtaking beauty and its many luxury homes owned by celebrities. Well, now this stretch of road tells a very different story, a story of loss, of devastation, a story of horror. We’re about to join our Unchained TV town hall, but first, let’s take a look at how these horrific events unfolded. On Tuesday, January 7, 2025, a wildfire ignited in the idyllic community of Pacific Palisades. While wildfires are a known threat in Los Angeles, no one could have anticipated the utter devastation that followed. Fueled by seasonal Santa Ana winds, hurricane-force gusts, and record-breaking drought, the fire became one of the most catastrophic in US history, destroying over 12,000 structures and so far claiming 27 human lives. Now, while most of the stories focus on the human toll, at UnchainedTV, we take a look at the big picture: animals, people, and the planet. And by the way, what’s happened to animals during these wildfires is absolutely heartbreaking. Oh, my goodness. These embers flying everywhere. Hi there. How many more horses do you have? We have a couple we just let loose over there. We’re trying to get as many as we can out. Yeah. Are there any homes out there having fires? Ozzy, I did not pay attention. I just drove straight to the barn to get my horses out. They love their animals. They didn’t mean to leave their animals behind. It wasn’t you know, maybe they were at work. Some of them were trying to catch their cats, and they hid under beds. And the police said, you need to get out in 5 minutes. So they did everything they could, and they left the windows and doors open and and hope they survive. We’re seeing a lot of smoke inhalation. The ash inside the house is so strong, and, the smell is just so bad that, you know, there’s definitely some cats that we’ve had that, you know, have been hospitalized, with oxygen for a day or 2. These rescues are so imperative not only to the cats, not only to the owner, but to, like, the history of the family. Look at that. Look at that. Wow. Melted. These cars were involved in what has become one of the most infamous incidents connected to this catastrophe. This is Sunset Boulevard, and the people in these cars were trying to flee the approaching flames. Traffic got backed up. They decided to ditch their cars, and then a bulldozer came and just pushed them out of the way to make room for the fire trucks. You know, kind of a metaphor for what could happen to all of us unless our culture becomes radically more sustainable soon. Climate change has undeniably played a major role in fueling these devastating fires in Los Angeles. You might be wondering, well, what can I do? To explore the answers, we now turn to the highlights of our Unshane TV town hall. Billy McNamara has just joined us. He has truly risked his life repeatedly during this fire to rescue animals. Can you tell us what it was like to be in the middle of this inferno? Well, I was I was a little bit caught by surprise, obviously. I didn’t think there was any reason to panic, but then I saw the smoke was just getting worse. What by the time I was able to get to the PCH, I, I tried to run across 2 or 3 times to get in there and see if there’s any pets that I could grab. And, unfortunately, every time I went there, it was like a massive heat wave hit me and almost knocked me back. It actually burned my tires eventually. And as I was running, a car drove by me. I heard Billy, and it was Aaron Christensen from the Animal Advocacy Network, and he was in that truck. And I’m like, hey. What what’s going on? He goes, do you wanna help out? We’re trying to get these horses and chickens and pigs and this and that. I said, sure. We did get all those animals out, everything from from the horses obviously to the peacocks. Very dangerous animals, the peacocks. You know, whether it’s a a dog, cat, or a goat, People love their animals. I don’t care what their their animals are. There’s there should be no discrimination here. I think it’s important to nobody or no animal deserves the suffocation, the smoke, and the burning alive. No animal deserves that. Well, I just wanna say thank you because the video shows you are there in the inferno, and I I just can’t thank you enough. You are our hero. Everybody is saying it, and thank you for rescuing those animals. Somebody else who I have to say, has experienced something really horrible as well, and that is John Hopkins, who is there with Tiffany Brunelli. You, John, lost your vegan restaurant. You lost your home, and you lost your car. So, Tiffany, can you describe a little bit, the impact on his life and how he’s surviving? He’s had a restaurant or or health food store since 1977. So I was teasing him today. He’s one of the mayors of Altadena. When I first went in, you just feel like you’re at home there. And his food was whole foods, plant based, no animal products. He was a one man operation. He cooked it all, and he barely escaped with his life. He was taking a nap, and he heard loud explosions in the parking lot. And they woke up, and he looked outside, and the whole entire street was on fire. And that both of his cars had exploded. So he barely escaped with his life at 3 AM in the morning. This was such a beautiful community hub burnt to the ground. His home was also burnt to the ground. His vehicle was burnt to the ground. And what is he going to do? So, this is a really, really, really tough situation. I know everybody’s hearts go out to you, John, and, I wanna say stay strong. We’re here for you. I wanna go to Lisa Levinson, who is, such a force with in defense of animals. And today, we wanna honor you because you’ve lost your partner in these flames. Tell us about Arthur and the situation that that evolved. Well, Arthur, he was definitely a renegade and a free spirit. Just prior to this incident, he was hot springing and at mammoth skiing, and he said, well, the responsible thing to do would be to come home because he saw all these people texting him and saying that, Topanga was on fire. So, he did come back, and, he was wanting to live life to the fullest, which he really did in so many, many ways. And I’m so grateful to him for teaching me, how to do that and to and also for being his companion on all of these wonderful journeys that we shared together. Given that you’ve paid the ultimate sacrifice, what would you say to the world at this juncture? Well, I would say that this is time to go vegan. This is the opportunity to do the one thing that we can do, each one of us in our mo in our daily lives, something that is a very simple act of kindness and compassion, which is to choose to live a vegan lifestyle so that we can reduce the impacts on the climate and that we can try to heal the planet and reduce or prevent these catastrophes. Well, I think that’s very, very good advice, and I wanna thank you again for joining us. Everybody’s heart goes out to you, and you have everyone’s deepest condolences. Thank you so much. I’m I’m truly grateful, and I appreciate everybody’s support. Take a look at that bird’s eye car. Kinda tells the whole story, doesn’t it? Where are we headed? Off a cliff? We’re in a time of climate crisis, and it’s clear we all have to collectively make some major lifestyle changes. The world can and will regenerate, just like the people of Los Angeles. But the real question Thanks for joining us for this Unchained TV special report. I’m Jane Velez Mitchell.